A Study of Religiosity and Psychological Distress among Cancer Patients

This paper talks about the relation of religion and spirituality to physical and emotional health and quality of life. This study is based on a sample of 100 cancer patients who filled out a 36 item religiosity scale along with a health questionnaire. A majority of the patients reported that their religious beliefs had been of support to them after they became ill from cancer. Religiosity was found to be significantly related to general satisfaction with life and feelings of hopelessness. Thus, the effect of religiosity on the survival of patients with severe diseases such as cancer seems worth following up in future studies. The authors conclude that regular inclusion of religiosity and spirituality measures in quality of life studies is needed in order to understand the integration of mind, body and spirit in cancer care.